West Coast Native Indian Art incorporates the use of design and legends to create a unique look unique any other art form in the world. It is strongly characterized by even distribution of weight and movement, so space-filling using traditional forms and legendary figures is an important principle of this art ......... the curve of a fin, may become the beak of a bird whose eye will contain a spirit design and so on. Although traditional ovoid shapes, eye, claw and feather shapes are used, each individual artist incorporates these shapes to his own advantage along with some of his own designs to create unique pieces of art which distinguish his work from others.
The symbols of the Native Cultures of the northwest have similar meanings, although the legends associated with them may be slightly different. These explanations are meant to be a guide to a better understanding of what each symbol stands for.

This dance is designated as intangible cultural property in Yamagata hyon in Japan.
The 'rice-planting dance', which starts with 'to be happy, to be happy in the spring????', has been launched since the middle age of Edo period in order to pray for good harvest and cheer the farmers.

By Susan Cochrane
In the Torres Strait Islands there are no art schools and art galleries like on mainland Australia. Many cultural objects are created and enjoyed for local purposes. Dance costumes and accessories are among the most important and distinctive creations of Torres Strait Islander culture. Some of the earliest known examples are the magnificent articulated turtleshell masks, such as those collected by the 1898 Cambridge Expedition to the Torres Strait, which are acknowledged treasures of the Torres Strait people's cultural and artistic heritage.

A set of 12 beautifully carved and painted wood pre-colonial Mayan folk masks with real glass eyes and original costumes is now offered on the market for the first time. These 12 masks belong to the Ketchi "Cortez" dance and were made before the turn of the century in Guatamala. They then found their way into the Maya Mountains of Belize where they were used until 1981. There is documentation of their use in Belize's national Independence Day celebration.
This is a powerful collection and has a very intersting story about how they had to be exorcized after being acquired. Many wood folk masks from Meso-America, due to the tropical climate and the custom of destroying the masks after their use makes finding an intact collection more than fifty years old very unusual. Most of the folk masks on the market today have been made for the tourist market and have never been used in a legitimate folk ritual. This folk collection was used for more than a hundred years and brings with them the power of their history.

African masks are not pieces of wood more or less decorative, but religious symbols that control the life of the village. They are linked with agrarian, funeral, and initiation rites. Each man has to carry out several rites, in order to be considered as a member of the community in his own right. On the other hand, the mask takes the vital strength of a being that runs away out when it dies, to control it, to avoid that it hurts someone, and to distribute it in benefit of the community. During the ritual dance, the bearer is protected by the mask, and it transforms him in another being. He must be dressed not to be recognised. The dress is also considered part of the mask, but the most important thing is the head, where the vital strength is

Agayuliyararput is the first exhibition of Native Alaskan Yup'ik material presented from a Yup'ik perspective. This Web exhibit highlights 27 Yup'ik objects from the National Museum of Natural History collection.

Beautiful masks here. Online sale. " Shop Masks "
Masks are powerful receptacles of wandering spirits, the divine and the demonic. For thousands of years masks have been used for rituals, protection and entertainment purposes and are considered sacred objects.
Masked dramas, puppet shows, operas and ballets are vehicles of religious teachings in the Indonesian culture. Elaborate dance dramas use masks to bring to life mythological figures. Masked dramas may be performed to appease witches or gods to appeal for their support. Masked dancers are believed to possess the spirits of the mask. The spectacular dance tradition in Bali consists of four traditional drams. The Wayang Wong is drawn from Hindu legends dramatizing the Ramayana and the Mahabhrata. The Barong is a dance that expels evil spirits from villages it involves giant puppets and animals that are seen as protectors. The Topeng or masked theater tells stories of ancient kingdoms and provides a visual for people to relate to their ancestors and the Calonarang which is a call to appease and get the support of Durga, the Queen of witches and Goddess of death.

These masks are constructed of wood, leather or skins, silver, tin, cloth, glass beads, oil painted plaster, fur, feathers, or some combination of these materials, with the intent of exaggerating the facial features, particularly the eyes and mouth, of the personage or animal in the dance. Common themes include the devil with horns, old men (Awki), African faces (Moreno), blonde haired/blue eyed men with bullet holes in their foreheads (Chunchus), angels, heroines (China Supay), and animals. Size varies according to the mask. Some are as small as 40 cm. or as large as 170 cm.

+ 2 photos of masked dancers
Boulles is a folk ritual which takes place once a year in Naoussa, Makedonia. It is believed that it originates in ancient Greek celebrations for the coming of Spring. All the dancers are male. They are wearing the traditional foustanella with special additions for the ritual: a breast plate covered with coins, a scarf tied around the waist, a mask and a large scarf covering the head. The picture below shows Boulla - a male dancer in woman's clothes. Boulla represents the Spring (Persephone of the ancient myths), which explains the flowers decorating the veil.

Short note and photo of Bulgarian Mask tradition
"marks the beginning of the spring calendar. Preparations for it took a longer time. Everybody made himself his own mask competing to show greater personal skill and craftsmanship. Therefore, no two ritual masks were alike. The koukeri's masks and garments are colourful, covered with beads, ribbons, and woollen tassels."

The deaths of villagers are 'celebrated' once or twice a year by the dance of the spirits, performed by dancers with big masks. It is a very energetic dance which, together with the rhythmic music, brings the crowd to great excitement. The dancers are in a sort of competition with each other, each with his group of supporters.

Casting Characters -Khmer Mask-making
in the workshop of An Sok
Surrounded by slanted rooftops and spacious views of the city, the family patriarch An Sok is usually seen hard at work. Walking through the studio, the visitor slowly realizes that the odd football-shaped cement forms lying on the ground are moulds for the faces of the characters of the Reamker, the Khmer version of the Ramagana.

The Carnival festivities end up with the Funeral of the Mask, (a parody of funeral). The corpse, is the Carnival King, and many mourning "relatives" follow the procession. The whole spectacle is hilarious.

Tradition demands it that giants should be carried by men who should slip into the osier bulk so that the first can dance. Yet, the carrying of giants has been in the past few years more and more subsidised by more convenient facilities (giants on wheels, on floats, on platforms, ?).
A giant that is not carried cannot dance, and thus, it is not alive!

( SCROLL DOWN PAGE TO GET TO THE MASKS )
Borucan craftsman have for centuries created elaborately carved balsa and cedar masks as essential accoutrements of the festival. They originally depicted jaguars, mountain pigs, mythological and ancestral figures (personajes y los antepasados). As resistance to the Conquest grew, the character of the ritual and the masks changed to include ghoulish devils, which is of course a European idea, bearded Spaniards, mules, horses, blacks (from contact with slaves) and, importantly, the bull as the symbol of the Conquest

The dance is performed in the Herrera province on the S.W.Pacific coastof Panama by individuals of Spanish descent generally at religious carnivals in urban areas. The origins of the dance can be traced back to Spain and are possibly even pre-Christian.
The dancers come from a wide variety of backgrounds, the centre of this activity is in Chitre, fourth largest town of Panama and provincial capital of Herrera. They number around seventy and unfortunately seem to be on the increase Costume consists of a "boilersuit" made up of red and black 20mmwide strips of cloth in a chevron pattern, an extremely elaborate papier mache mask and of course a headdress consisting of ten to thirty Macaw tail feathers,red being the most highly prized. I estimate it would need at least five hundred hours work to complete one of these outfits. Some are self made, others are made by professionals. Children also participate usually using wing feathers. The tradition is deep rooted and well respected locally and nationally.